Left On The Steps Of The FBI
by Cometas Por El Cielo
Summary: *Re-write* On a summer afternoon, two teenagers arrive at the BAU claiming to be David Rossi's daughters. The problem? He didn't know that they existed; until now.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I do not own Criminal Minds, only characters not on the show such as Haylee and Harper Rossi. This fic starts somewhere in the middle of season four.

I apologize in advance for the long A/N. I promise that this first one is long for a reason.

All chapters after this chapter will be in third person POV. This first chapter only will be in Haylee's POV.

This is a re-write of a previous Criminal Minds fic of mine. If you haven't read it, don't bother- I really don't think it's any good. My writing as improved since then- I think so anyway- and the only reason that it's still up it because I want to include _some _of the events of the original in this one, except write them better, include more detail, clean up typos and grammatical errors, etc, etc.

I also think it will flow better with this first chapter only being in a first person point of view. I very much prefer third person anyway, but I feel like the first chapter just fits well being in the POV of one of the twins.

It anyone spots any typos or grammar errors I missed, don't hesitate to point them out (nicely, please) and I'll fix them. Constructive criticism is greatly appreciated, welcomed, and by all means encouraged. I know I'm likely to get some eventually- I'm still growing as a writer, being fourteen.

Lastly, the chapter is semi-short because it's basically just a "here it is, starting the story" chapter. I'm going to try to average between 2K-4K a chapter, in a pinch, no less than 1.5K, and I'll try not to have a chapter much over 5K.

Anyway, here goes nothing.

* * *

**Left On The Steps Of The FBI**

**Chapter One: Hello, Dad**

* * *

The hot summer sun shone brightly as we stepped out of the taxi. My sister squeezed my hand as we stood in front of the FBI Academy, gawking at it. She hadn't spoken since the train left the Amtrak station in New Orleans, except to ask me the occasional question. Harper's long, mouse brown hair, identical to mine, billowed behind her in the wind as she kept her head down.

I tapped her hand and gestured to the building in front of us. "Come on, Harper," I told her. "We have to go in."

"But what if he doesn't want us, Haylee?" Harper asked seriously.

I bit my lip, knowing she was right. If our mother could change her mind after fifteen years, who's to say our father would want to take on two children he doesn't even know exist? But of course I didn't voice my fears to my sister. I just told her that we'd cross that bridge if we had to.

I took a deep breath and grasped her hand as we started toward the building.

"Harper," I asked my younger twin. "What floor is the Behavioral Analysis Unit on again?"

"BAU is on the…fifth? I think."

I nodded, "Fifth it is."

The elevator ride was the most uncomfortable experience of my life. My palms were sweaty and it was all I could do to keep from fainting right there. A million different things ran through my mind as the elevator doors opened on the fifth floor right in front of glass doors with the FBI's seal on them. Through the glass doors, I saw straight into what I assumed was where the BAU agents worked. Inside, there were desks, office doors, everything typical to Hollywood's idea of a government agency workplace. It was almost funny how accurate it was.

Before Harper could hesitate, I forced her out of the elevator and through the glass doors leading to the office-looking area. The first person I saw was a pretty blonde woman with a large stack of files in her arms. I searched for nametag and upon seeing it, tentatively addressed her.

"Ms. Jareau? Or, um, Agent?"

She turned around and set the files down on the nearest desk before cautiously raising an eyebrow at us. "Can I help you?"

"We need to see David Rossi...Agent David Rossi. It's kind of important; extremely important, actually." I said, trying my best to act as adult-like as a possible.

"Agent Rossi is pretty busy," she answered. "I'm the team's media liaison and communications director, I'm sure I can help you with whatever it is."

"With all due respect Agent Jareau, we _really _need to speak with Agent Rossi. Please," I added.

I guess she knew that I wasn't going to back down until I got what I wanted, so she nodded and led us to his office and knocked on the door and came in with us. Two agents were inside, one stern-looking man who looks like he never smiles, and a somewhat older and slightly shorter man with black hair.

"JJ," the stern man said to Agent Jareau.

"Hotch, these girls would like to speak with Agent Rossi." Said JJ, then she left the office.

_So the stern guy is Hotch. That makes the shorter man-_

"I'm Agent Rossi," said the man sitting at the desk. "What can I help you with?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but as soon as I went to form my words I found myself dumbstruck. So I stand there with my mouth agape like an idiot, holding onto Harper's hand like a frightened child, and about to faint.

"Spit it out, we don't have all day," he said hurriedly, and earned a cautious look from 'Hotch.'

I closed my mouth, opened it, and closed it a few times then finally said, "My name is Haylee and this is my twin sister Harper. Mr- I mean- Agent Rossi…you're our father."

There. I said it. There were probably a million other and better ways that I could have put that, but I figured it's better to be straight up than it is to eloquently beat around the bush. I stood there awkwardly as I waited for him to reply.

"Who is your mother?" came the unusually calm response.

"D-Danielle Carranzo-Rossi."

Agent Rossi shook his head. "She wasn't pregnant when she left me. I'm sorry; you must have me confused with somebody else."

"I-I-I I can prove it. S-sort of, I mean. Mom sent us with copies of our birth certificates, which I guess doesn't really prove much but she gave us money for a DNA paternity test if you wanted one, and she-"

My eyes widened and I fell silent. For the first time in my life, I was genuinely terrified. Not once since our mother basically told us that she'd chosen her rich fiancée over us had I been afraid. Until now, it was still too surreal for me to feel any sort of emotion about it. I had other things to worry about- school, the soccer team, the volleyball team, glee club, drama club, debate club, my music, dance class, dance competitions, my job at the Main Branch of the New Orleans Public Library, my commitment to my church youth group and to the church worship team, my social life- there wasn't room in my schedule to worry about meeting my father and my mother's (for lack of a better word) abandonment. But now, school was out and there were no more grades or sports or clubs to worry about. I was miles away from the library, the church, and the dance studio back in New Orleans. All of mine and Harper's instruments were in the attic of our uncle's house on Palmer Avenue. For the first time ever, the reality of the situation I was in came crashing down on me like a meteorite.

"My gawd," I said, my New Orleans accent becoming even more pronounced than usual as my composure declined. "You think I'm insane or something, don't you? You think I'm lying."

"I never accused you of lying-"

"Not outright, but you were implying it. Why would I lie about this? I'm sorry for interrupting you just then; that was very rude of me. But…Harper and I- we don't have anywhere to go. Our mom is getting married to some rich guy and- look. It's a long, long story. She told us you probably wouldn't believe us and-"

Harper wiped a tear from my eye with her finger. I wasn't even aware it was there. I thought that maybe she'd speak up then, but she didn't so I sighed and apologized. The agents both stood there, staring at us and scrutinizing our appearance to see if we looked anything like the man we claimed to be our father.

"What did Danielle expect me to do?" Agent Rossi asked. His calm façade was starting to become a little transparent, but at least he wasn't majorly freaking out. That was at least somewhat comforting.

"I don't know."

He stood there looking at his for a while longer before sharing a glance with the other agent. "Would you girls excuse us for a moment?"

"Yes sir," I said.

"Yes sir," Harper echoed softly. Agent Rossi asked me to leave the folder with our personal information on his desk and I did just that as I led Harper out of the office and into the chairs outside.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I do not own Criminal Minds. This is where the third person writing starts.

Another short, "filler" chapter. The next is longer, considerably longer. I'm almost done with it.

**Chapter Two: This Is Certainly…Unexpected**

_Life is full of surprises, but never when you need one. _

― _Bill Watterson_

Rossi turned to face Hotch once they were alone in his office. "Aaron, do you believe this?"

"Dave, it's possible. You _were_ married to their mother at around the time-"

The Italian shook his head. "Danielle wasn't pregnant when she left me. She must have been having an affair and that's who their father is. Hotch, if they were mine she would have told me."

"Not if she didn't want you to know about them." Hotch said solemnly as he picked up the birth certificates and handed them to his friend.

Rossi took them and looked them over, looking for any possible sign of a forgery, though he knew he couldn't tell the difference even if he tried. The birth certificates stated that Haylee Xaviera and Harper Amélie Rossi were born in Coventry, Rhode Island in February of 1994.

_It's possible, _Dave thought. His ex-wife grew up in Rhode Island, and had family there at the time of their divorce. Another glance at the birthdates got the wheels in his head turning. If they were born in late February of '94 and if they were born a few weeks early as multiples often are, then it was very possible that he could be their father.

The girls' middle names fit Danielle's ancestry as well. Danielle's father was from Quebec and was the son of a French-Canadian woman and a Spanish-Italian man, and her mother was a full-blooded Italian from Providence, Rhode Island. Danielle was always very proud of her heritage, so it made sense for the middle names to be Spanish and French.

It made sense.

"What do I do Aaron?"

"Do you think they're lying?" Aaron Hotchner questioned, getting to the point.

Rossi thought about it for a moment. "I think it is possible that they are telling the truth."

Hotch nodded briefly and said, "Dave, they have nowhere else to go. Let them stay with you for tonight. I'll give you the rest of the week off to figure out what you want to do."

"Thank you. Have Penelope send me the phone numbers of Danielle as well as her parents and siblings. I want to talk to her and her family and find out more about this."

"You'll have an e-mail waiting by the time you get home."

~.*~.*~.*

Harper twiddled her thumbs as she waited outside of Agent Rossi's office. Nervous habit. Harper always seemed to be an emotional wreck; at least that's what her mother would tell her. The younger Rossi was never as put-together and composed as the elder. Even at a time like this Haylee kept her cool. Harper knew that it was a façade on her sister's part, but was stunned at how well she pulled it off. Inwardly, Harper was sure that her sister was hurting, was scared, and was just as uncertain as she was about their future.

Harper didn't like it at the BAU office, or whatever it's called. She would rather have been anywhere else in the world- even at Auschwitz, where she almost had a panic attack on the tour the previous summer. At least while touring the Nazi concentration camp she knew that nothing could happen to her; the atrocities committed there were committed about seventy years ago.

She jumped when she heard Agent Rossi's office door open. Haylee drew in a breath and peered out of her peripheral vision to see which agent was exiting. It was the younger one, the one Agent Rossi called 'Hotch.' He told the girls that they could come back inside. The girls grabbed each other's hands and stepped inside.

Agent Rossi cleared his throat and gestured to the chairs in his office. Once the girls were seated, he sat across from them and said, "I've reviewed the information in the folder that you girls handed me, and Agent Hotchner and I both believe that it looks credible. There is plenty of room at my house, and you will stay there tonight. My colleague is arranging for a paternity test for tomorrow afternoon; we'll see how things go from there."

A short, unnerving silence followed before Haylee quietly chimed, "Thanks for, um…letting us stay tonight."

"I'm not just going to toss you and your sister out on the street. It's the least I can do."

~.*~.*~.*

The drive to his home was silent until Dave looked into the rearview mirror and asked, "Are you girls from Louisiana? Your accents kind of give it away."

Haylee smiled halfheartedly and said, "Yes, sir. We've pretty much lived in New Orleans since we were two."

"Did you like it?"

"We loved it," the girls said in unison. Haylee continued, "We could walk or ride bikes to get to most of the places we wanted to go. Worse-came-to-worse we used the transit system. We rarely had to have Mom drive us anywhere."

Dave's grip on the steering wheel loosed just a little as his nerves began to relax. "Big cities are like that."

"I like big cities. There's so much diversity; I like diversity," Haylee said.

_At least the talkative one isn't stuck in a unicultural bubble, _Dave thought.

Haylee's jaw dropped when they pulled into the driveway of the house on Fallon Lake Circle. "You didn't mention that you lived in a freaking mansion!"

Dave chuckled and shrugged, "Comes with the whole bestselling author thing, I guess."

He led them up to the door and put the key in the lock. Before opening the door, he asked if either of them were allergic to dogs.

"No, sir," they replied.

"He doesn't bite, I promise. He'll just lick you to death." He opened the door and a dog came bounding forward to greet him. The animal then proceeded to sniff, lick, and jump on the girls excitedly as they walked inside.

Harper giggled and scratched his ears as her licked her elbow, unable to reach her face. "Slobber," she laughed, wiping her elbow on her hip.

"Down, Mudgie."

The dog licked Harper once more as if being deliberately defiant and pranced away.

"Have you girls eaten lunch?"

"No sir," they said in unison. "The food on the train was pretty good, but we weren't really hungry." Haylee added.

Dave nodded, understanding completely. "In that case," he said. "Is home-cooked Italian alright with you?"

Harper's eyes widened in disbelief; there they were strangers in this man's home and he was going to cook for them? She and Haylee's mother hated having to cook, and she raised them! "Yes sir,"

He shook his head and chuckled, "Call me Dave; sir makes me feel old."

Once dinner was started he showed the girls to the guest rooms upstairs. When he told them that they could take their pick, the sisters both slipped into the same room, opting to sleep together. They didn't want to be apart any more than necessary in the midst of this drastic life change. Thank God it was summertime and they don't have to worry about going to a new school yet. At least they had the summer to make the adjustment.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: Making Progress**

~.*~.*~.*

Eight days had passed since David Rossi had met his daughters. Needless to say, that week and a day were hectic. He spent the first three days phoning Danielle's siblings and her Italian-speaking mother and heavily accented father. After making the initial contact with his ex-wife's family, most of them called back at least once in the following days to see how the girls were doing and asking if their contact information has changed. Danielle had cut off their girl's cell phones, so, of course, Dave had to add two new lines to his Verizon plan and memorize those numbers to give them out along with his address.

On top of relaying new and vital information to Haylee and Harper's relatives, there were some legal matters that needed to be double-checked. Since there was never actually a custody agreement and that up until the present time he wasn't in his daughters' lives, he was unsure as to what the situation meant- legally. Dave contacted a lawyer friend of his to make sure that he indeed had any sort of parental rights regarding them- oh he prayed to God that he did. The last thing he wanted to do then or _ever _is deal with "that woman" in a custody dispute. If it came down to it, he had already decided he would fight. Luckily, his friend in all his legal expertise wasn't able to see any issue with the situation. One weight off his shoulder, countless more to go.

Hotch was being gracious and giving his friend more time off of work. The team was working a case in New Hampshire without him and Dave had full confidence in their functionality and ability sans the Italian. Truthfully, he rather enjoyed being able to spend time with the girls. He took them shopping on the third day of having them there, seeing as they only had enough clothing to fill a suitcase between the two of them. The total cost of the day would have made most parents cringe, but he had money to spare.

The time off also gave him plenty of time to get to know the girls. After only eight days, he felt comfortable talking to them and he was almost certain that they felt the same. Not once has he gotten Haylee and Harper mixed up- quite the achievement on his part. He also made the effort to find out what their interests were, so he could do anything he could to help. They were both avid readers, as well as foreign TV and movie junkies. Haylee was also a writer, whereas Harper was an artist. Dave discovered that both were very active; Haylee has been dancing and playing soccer and volleyball for as long as she could remember, and Harper was an ex-gymnast turned dedicated figure-skater. Having come from a musical family on their mother's side, both had a love for music and performing, but Harper much preferred playing an instrument or singing back-up to being in the spotlight.

'Haylee can and will sing just about anything. I only sing what I want when I want,' she had explained. It made sense to Dave…somewhat. He did, however, understand not wanting to necessarily show off a talent shared with a sibling as often as a sibling does. Growing up, Dave played the piano, just like all of his siblings. He played well, but his sister Catarina possessed more than just a talent for it. Cathy was gifted with the skill of a master pianist and Dave had no interest in having his skill compared to his sister's, so he rarely played outside the home. Even in his early fifties he owned a piano that he hardly ever touched.

_Perhaps I should let the girls know that they can use the piano, _Dave wondered. _They'd like that._

"I'm sure you've seen the piano in the living room," he said at breakfast on the eighth day.

"Which living room?" Harper asked with a chuckle. The house had a den, two living rooms, many bedrooms and bathrooms, and several other rooms. She almost had the nerve to call their new home in Stafford a mansion.

"The one without the television in it," he replied with a grin. "You can play it. It might be out of tune, but I know a-"

"We can tune a piano," Harper cut in softly.

"Yeah," said Haylee. "When we turned ten our Uncle Pascal made us learn before he would give us our presents. He said that piano-tuning was a dying skill."

"And that he'd be damned if he let his two favorite nieces help murder it."

Haylee nodded and shoved a piece of bacon into her mouth. "Very useful skill. We finally mastered it on our fifteenth birthday, a few months ago."

"I remember Pascal," Dave said. He remembered his ex-brother-in-law fondly. "He was always my favorite out of your mom's siblings."

The girls scowled at the mention of their so-called mother. "Danielle," Haylee said emotionlessly. "I don't have a mom."

"Haylee…" Harper whispered, trying to soften her sister's heart and abate her anger.

The older twin glared down at her breakfast plate and as she finished eating her anger subsided for the time being. Once she could speak again with a gentle tone, "So you really mean it? We may play it?"

Their father smiled. "Of course you may."

The girls' eyes widened and their mouth spread into overly-excited, almost manic smiles. "Thank you!" They exclaimed.

"We've been dying without our instruments," Harper said melodramatically.

"It's been _treacherous _without them!" Haylee offered just as melodramatically.

_Hm, _thought Dave. _I can arrange for your instruments._

~.*~.*~.*

After breakfast, Haylee offered to take care of the dishes and did so. Eating at his table still felt weird to her and she was sure Harper felt the same. She didn't even know that her father really existed until a few years ago (a memory that remained vivid in her mind since that day for all the right and wrong reasons) much less thought she'd ever meet him. Perhaps her mother's abandonment was a blessing in disguise. Pastor Marc at her church in New Orleans always talked about how somebody's greatest struggles can turn into the greatest blessings of their lifetime. _God works in mysterious ways, Haylee. _Pastor would say. _He has great plans for you, you'll see. Trust in Him._

"I wish it were that easy," she sighed as she finished up the dishes. Her church family and Pascal were the only constants in her life other than her sister but now that both she and Harper have been uprooted from their lives, she didn't have Pascal to lean on, her church, or even Harper who was just as lost as she. Haylee knew that she wanted to find another church right away and plug in to it as soon as possible but it still felt too…soon. It was too soon to put herself out in the community, to soon to insert herself into another family.

She made a mental note to search for Nazarene churches in the Stafford area, the denomination of her previous church. If there wasn't one, she supposed she'd find a Methodist church- she liked the Methodist church her friend Azumi went to almost as much as she liked her own.

She sighed heavily and exited the kitchen to find Mr. Ros- no. She mentally scolded herself. Though she barely knew the man, he was her father, and girls don't call their dads "Mr. Rossi." Or even "Dave" for that matter.

_Well, I do. At least for the time being._

Dave was sitting in the living room- the one _with _the television- reading a book. Curiosity took a control for a brief moment as she took a step closer to read the title. She grinned when she saw that it was one she recognized- The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen.

"That's a great book," Haylee commented. "What chapter are you on?"

Her dad bookmarked the book and closed it. "Chapter 27. Does Lord Conner stay a complete asshole throughout the rest of book?"

Haylee shrugged. "You'll see. There's a plot twist coming on chapter 33. Don't say I didn't warn you."

"You should come with a warning label: Gives out book spoilers."

In spite of herself, she laughed at his attempt at parent-child playful teasing and admits that she's known for giving spoilers. "But it's not like _you _haven't given book spoilers before. You told everyone the ending of a John Sandford novel in your fourth book. I was in the middle of reading the book you spoiled as well, but I'm kind of glad you did. I didn't quite enjoy Rules of Prey as much as Sandford's other books."

"Sandford writes very realistic crime novels and I write true crime," said agent Rossi. "Aren't you a little young for that?"

"You're not going to believe me," Haylee said as she bent down to pick up a little clump of dog fur. "But I used to want to be in the FBI."

"Really?" asked Dave while Haylee went to throw the fur in the trashcan.

"Yeah. I changed my mind, though. I realized I loved languages and studying them more than anything, so now I want to be a linguist. I already speak French, Italian and a little Spanish because of my grandparents and great-grandparents and was taking ASL at my school in Louisiana. Studying languages and the structure of them are fascinating to me."

Dave's lips curved upward into a huge grin. "You speak Italian? Does Harper as well?"

Haylee nodded quickly, "Of course. Mom- I mean- Danielle's whole family speaks fluent Spanish, French and Italian, but Harper, our cousins and I are only fluent in French and Italian. _Parli italiano_?"

"Of course. My father immigrated from Italy as a teenager and my mother is first-generation American. My siblings and I all grew up bilingual. _Una sola lingua non è mai abbastanza._"

For the first time since coming to Virginia, Haylee felt like she could fit in this man's life somehow. David Rossi didn't just seem like a stranger whose home she and her sister would be living in. Harper was right- he's worth getting to know, and building a wall of bitterness against Danielle would do nothing to help her get to know her dad.

Like the oh-so-tactful socializer Haylee is, she changed the subject. "You're handling this unusually well. Why?"

Taken by surprise, his response was a bit delayed. His brown eyes lit up in a way when he answered. "I'd always wanted children. The timing wasn't what I hoped it would be and you girls are already fifteen, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm your-"

They both held their breath and stared at one another for a moment. Though neither spoke, they knew what the other was thinking. Neither of the two wanted to make the other feel uncomfortable by openly acknowledging that they were now a family, at least not yet.

"I'll let you get back to that book," Haylee murmured.

Dave let her turn and walk away and didn't speak until she almost reached the staircase. "I wish she would have told me. I would have done anything to be involved in your lives had I known, despite the divorce, the distance, and my job. Please believe that."

"We knew," she said and made a quarter turn toward him. "We knew before you did."

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat on the couch. "What do you mean?"

"Danielle took us to a bookstore when we were in seventh grade. That was one of the few outings she ever took us on, really. Harper and I love books so we looked all around the store for something to read. We saw the last name 'Rossi' on one of the books and we thought it was really cool that an author had the same last name as us. It's funny because Rossi is the most common last name in Italy, but everyone I meet says 'Oh, that's very different,' and I'm like, 'Not really.' Harper grabbed the book off the shelf to read the about the author tab- ironically enough to see if he was from Rhode Island, where were born, to see if 'we can claim relation to someone cool.' Our…_mother_-"

She said the word like a curse. "-snuck up behind us and said, 'I figured you'd get your hands on one of your father's books sooner or later. We laughed at her because there was just no way that it could possibly be true, but the look on her face shut us up instantly. We knew she wasn't kidding after that. Whenever we asked her why we didn't know you, she'd just tell us that you didn't want to have anything to do with us. When we asked her why, she just said it was complicated."

Dave stood up and started to walk toward her. "Did you believe her?"

Haylee turned to face him again and looked apologetic. "For about a year we did. But we got older and got to thinking more and came to the conclusion that you didn't know we existed. She never got any sort of child support checks, which you would, by law, be required to send even if you wanted nothing to do with us. I mean, I know that most no-account dads don't send the money, but Harper figured that a federal agent like yourself wouldn't skip out on child support checks, especially since you happened to be a best-selling author and the monthly pay-out wouldn't make a dent in your bank account. The only logical explanation was that you didn't know. We were pretty smart for a pair of twelve year olds."

He was relieved at her answer. "You believe me then. About what I said a minute ago."

"I believe you. And Harper does too-" she paused to call up the stairs, "Right Harp?"

Harper, who heard Dave and Haylee's entire conversation from the top of the stairs calls back, "Absolutely!"

"Now seriously," Haylee said with a slight smile. "Go back to that book. It's amazing and you have to finish it quickly so we can talk about it."

"Yes ma'am," he joked, mock saluting her.

"I just have one more question. Well, it's actually Harper's question, but I was nominated to ask it."

"Ask away."

Haylee twiddled her thumbs nervously and mumbled, "It's not just Harper's question, it's mine as well, but she insisted we ask it today. And it had to be _to_day for some reason. But, I uh. No, we. _We _want to know if we can start calling you 'Dad,' when we're ready. I mean, it'll eventually get weird addressing you with your first name."

It took most of what he had in his to not jump with elation at the question. Of course they could call him 'Dad.' The sooner the better but no rush. He honestly couldn't wait until he was their father not only by biology, but by bond as well.

The response to the question was no surprise; "Yes, of course. You can call me whatever you want whenever you're ready. There's no rush, take your time."

"Thank you," she said. "Thank you."

_No, thank _you.


	4. Chapter 4

Thank you to Draculoramalfoy11, Raggle Taggle Gypsy, Ren Kayashima, and p95000 for reviewing :)

As far as why I've been pretty AWOL lately- school. Last semester was tough…buuut no more school! YAY!

This chapter has a lot more focus on Dave and Haylee bonding than Dave and Harper bonding, but no worries, that will come a bit later. Come to think of it, there isn't much Harper at all here, but next chapter there will be. I just figured I'd have this chapter focus on the Dave-Haylee relationship, and next chapter focus on Haylee-Harper and Dave-work, and then a big Dave-Harper bonding part son.

* * *

**Sassmaster**

* * *

~.*~.*~.*

Three weeks later, the adjustment was no longer an adjustment, but the norm. The twins had gotten used to spending their days alone together in the large house after Dave had to return to work. Luckily, though, he hadn't been called away for a case yet- three evaluations at prisons in New England, yeah, but no cases. Stafford being only around a half hour away from Quantico, Dave was usually home in time to make dinner, but Harper cooked at least twice a week anyway, because she wanted to. What Haylee lacked in cooking skills, she made up for in her pseudo-OCD cleaning habits.

More importantly than finding their niches in the housework, the girls took their dad up on his offer to make use of the piano. The piano was a Fazioli, handcrafted in Italy, and obviously expensive. It's a shame to think that until they showed up, the masterpiece just sat in a room gathering dust. The piano was Harper's favorite instrument to play. Haylee was still miserable without her other instruments, but the Fazioli was more than enough to keep her satisfied.

Haylee sat at the piano absentmindedly playing the piano part of Drops of Jupiter. She didn't know that anyone else was in the room until she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"You can play that song?"

Haylee jumped and turned around. "Dave, you like Drops of Jupiter?"

"Who doesn't? It would be sacrilegious."

"Dang straight!"

"Your playing is beautiful."

She pushed her hair behind her ears and smiled sheepishly. "Thank you. A whole bunch of us performed this song in our school's spring talent show. Uncle Pascal helped us pull it together; it turned out to be one of the best acts. I played piano."

Dave smiled and actually seemed really interested. "Who sang?"

"Our friend Felipe. Harper and the boy drumming sang backup. I think that's what I'm going to miss the most about New Orleans- we had a large group of friends who loved music like we do, we were always working on talent show acts or community showcase performances."

He quickly ran his fingers through her hair, something he recalled his father affectionately doing to his sisters. "I'm sure you'll find people like that here. It's probably nothing like the New Orleans music scene, but there are plenty of talented people your age around here."

"Thanks, Dave," Haylee said, hugging him.

"Of course," he said, awkwardly hugging her back.

"Did you come in here for any particular reason?"

Dave cleared his throat. "Yes, I was wondering if you and Harper liked cannoli. I was thinking of making some for desert."

"I'm Italian," she stood from the piano bench. "If I could, I'd live off of cannoli and pizzelle if I could. Who needs boyfriends when there's cannoli?"

Though he's only known his daughters for a few weeks, the idea of either of them having a boyfriend is completely abhorrent to him. "Great mindset, keep it."

~.*~.*~.*

Dave had a new respect for his father after these few weeks. How he raised eight children, including four daughters and a set of twins is beyond him. Dave realized that he hadn't given his old man a call in a while, nor has he spoken to his mother. He made a mental note to call them…when and if he remembered. To be honest, he wanted to put off telling them about their unknown grandchildren for a while longer. Luigi and Aletta Rossi raised their children with a fairly relaxed Catholic upbringing, but had grown far more devout themselves since David's childhood. They were adamantly pro-life, didn't believe in using birth control, death penalty ban proponents, and absolutely anti-divorce. When Dave and Carolyn divorced, all Hell broke loose between him and his parents. He had this lingering feeling that his parents wouldn't accept his daughters into their family as quickly as he had. No matter what, Haylee and Harper are his daughters, and despite the unexpectedness of it all, regardless of the fact that he's only known them for weeks, he loves them.

The concept of being a father is admittedly foreign to him. He did get to be a dad for a short few hours back in 1979, before James David Rossi died from anencephaly, but this was entirely different. There is an astronomical difference between holding onto a dying infant and parenting two teenage girls. Hell, Dave didn't even know they existed until they showed up at the BAU. Speaking of the BAU, his team asked about their progress often. They wanted to meet them properly soon, but were giving them time to bond as a family.

Granted, the family was making progress. Harper bravely challenged Dave to a game of poker one evening and kicked his tail. Poker became an at least once a week thing for the three of them. It wasn't uncommon for him to come home from work to the piano playing of one of his daughters, occasionally accompanied by lyrics. The fact that they speak Italian was very much a bonus. Finally, he had someone (or two someones) who will understand the occasional statement, question, or sarcastic remark.

_What _did _I do without them? How dull my life must have been._

Three weeks into this whole parenting thing, and he thinks he's doing a decent job. He found a Nazarene church for Haylee to attend in Garrisonville, just fifteen minutes' worth of driving, and a few decent dance studios in the area for her to look at. (Though, he told her that he's not going to be a reliable ride to and from, and that he's pretty sure that the girl across the street dances somewhere- 'I'll find out where she goes.') Harper doesn't want to continue figure skating and instead wants to focus on school sports once school is in session, and he's already scheduled physicals for the girls so they can do school sports. Garcia found their YouTube channels, where they've uploaded covers, originals, a few vlogs, and several video projects- often collaborations with friends. She also dug up their tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook accounts. They're archetypal 21st century teenagers. He didn't obsessively go through their Twitter feeds, blogs, and YouTubes…just scanned them over to see what they were into. Judging from the YouTube, being without all of their other instruments must have been torture. He was still working out a way for him to get them from the house in New Orleans- he and their uncle Pascal just had such conflicting work schedules. He'd been considering taking them to a big music store near DC to buy temporary stand-ins, but even he knew how musicians are often attached to their "babies." One way or another, he'll make sure that they have more than just the piano.

All Dave wanted was to be a good father to them, and make up for not being there before. Luckily, neither twin seemed to be holding a grudge, nor did they seem to be harboring any harsh feelings. Harsh feelings toward him, that is. The same can't be said for Danielle. Haylee refuses to call her "Mom," and Harper cringes whenever she says it. The thought of that woman infuriated him to no end. How could she possibly keep his kids from him? What right did she ever have to do that? He would have put a lot of thing on hold to raise them. He never once doubted that they'd of still ended up divorced, but no matter what, he would have made sure he was active in their lives. The upside to Danielle's abandonment, however, was that he got to have them all to himself. Maybe he could make up for lost time…maybe.

Cannoli and no set chores or bedtimes was a good start, right?

As Dave sat at his computer in his home office, he could faintly hear the TV from the living room playing the theme song from The Big Bang Theory. The clock read 11:15, way past his usual bedtime, but he'd lost track of time while writing and wasn't all that tired yet. The muse was hitting him hard with writing ability at the moment- so what if he'd be tired at work tomorrow? He yawned, stretched, and stared at the screen before getting out of the chair to get a cup of coffee.

"Oh! I didn't realize how late it was," Haylee said, turning the volume down. "Am I bothering you?"

"Not at all," Dave replied, halfway to the kitchen. "A little background noise is much more helpful than you'd think."

"It helps me," she said. "I can't study, write, or read with total silence."

He began to put enough coffee in for one person, but paused instead of putting the can away. "This probably isn't a good idea, but do you want a cup of coffee?"

"Sure, and do we still have some of the biscotti that Harper made the other night?"

"I think we do."

Haylee smiled and turned the volume up just a notch. She was starting to warm up to the idea of this man being her father. The fact that he's part of an elite group within the FBI adds bonus points to his level of coolness; not many people can say that their dad is a founding member of the BAU, now can they?

She could smell the coffee before Dave even had to say a word. "What do you like in it?"

"Just some creamer, but I can-"

"No need," he said, walking to the living room with their coffee.

The words fell out of her mouth before she could think to stop them. "Thanks, Dad." Haylee's jaw dropped slightly and she bit down on her lower lip while she and Dave stared at each other.

Finally, after a long, awkward silence, Dave looked down at his hands and back up to Haylee. "Dad?"

Haylee's face flushed pink as she stared at her coffee cup. "Well, yeah. It's been a month. You can't expect us to just call you 'Dave' forever. Was that too soon? We can go back to Dave if you-"

"No. Dad is just fine."

"Are you sure?"

Rossi smiled and sat down next to her, placing his coffee cup on the side table. "I'm sure, kiddo. I'm just surprised that it didn't take you longer is all."

"Well," she laughed, sipping from her cup, "I'm surprised too. But you're a lot nicer than I thought you'd be, and that made it easier to get used to you."

Dave raised an eyebrow. "Nicer?"

Haylee smiled nervously and stared at her cup. "Harper and I were afraid that you were going to be mean because Danielle is. She always sucked as a mom, even before she…you know. Mean people usually stick with other mean people. High school logic."

"I'm nice until you piss me off," he joked in a rather serious voice.

"Wow, you're awfully sassy," she playfully teased. "I'm going to have to change your name in my phone to Sassmaster. I think I will." Sure enough, she grabs her iPhone from under her thigh and goes to her address book. Rossi's number was under the name 'My Paternal Unit,' but within ten seconds read 'Sassmaster.' "You're Darth Vader in Harper's phone."

Rossi couldn't help but laugh at his daughters' senses of humor. "Nice Star Wars reference."

"Those are hardly the strangest contact names we have," Haylee yawned.

"You're tired after a cup of coffee? Lucky kid."

"It's not my fault that you're drinking coffee ten minutes to midnight on a work night," she pointed out. "What are you doing up this late anyway, Dad?"

"Writing," he mumbled.

"The muse chose to visit you at the worst possible time, eh? Same usually goes for me. I've woken up at one o'clock in the morning before because an idea for a song, poem, or short story has popped into my head. Though, I've found that I do some of my best work in the early hours of the morning. So what, this will make book number seven?"

"Eight, actually."

"My goodness! How many serial killers have you run into?"

"More than you want to know," he sighed and played with a strand of her hair. "More than you ever want to know."


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I don't own Criminal Minds.

I'm trying to make timelines at least loosely fit the show, but that's a bit difficult. Currently, the events of this fic are taking place sometime around season 5(ish), but the events of the show and this won't really overlap at all until the events of season 6- like episodes 6x2, and 6x18.

* * *

**A Snap Decision**

* * *

~.*~.*~.*

"Have you thought about what to do with your girls when you're working a case?" Hotch's question took him by surprise, because honestly, the answer is no. Hotch didn't need to wait for his friend to respond- the look on his face was answer enough. The unit chief gestured to the conference room.

"Where is this one?"

"Richmond."

"Virginia?"

"Isn't that the only one?"

The rest of the team had already arrived, and JJ began to present the case before the men had even taken their seats. "The body of Janet Baker, a 16 year old from the affluent Richmond suburb of Windermere was found four days ago in the James River. Janet was never reported missing because her parents have been away in Europe for a business trip for the past eight days. Cause of death was strangulation, and prior to being murdered, she was raped. This murder is identical to the murders of three other girls ages 16-20 in the Richmond area- Claire Adamcyzk, also from an affluent neighborhood, Mai Ilves, from a working class Estonian-American family, and Tara Bateman, an inner city foster kid. All four were raped, strangled, and the bodies have been found three weeks apart, until now. Janet Baker's body was found just four days after Tara Bateman's, and another Richmond girl is missing. Nineteen year old Corrie Lawless was last seen grocery shopping with her brother two days ago. She stepped outside to have a cigarette and hasn't been seen since."

"He definitely doesn't care about socio-economic status," said Dr. Reid. "Claire and Janet came from families living in million dollar homes, Mai was the daughter of Estonian immigrants, and Tara was low-income. Corrie Lawless's family is your typical picket-fence 2.5 kids."

"It's the appearance the unSub cares about," Dave said, an uneasy feeling forming in the pit of his stomach. All five girls are dark-haired and share a nose shape. Mai Ilves's picture sent shivers down his spine. Aside from the hazel eyes, Mai looked exactly like Harper. Both of Rossi's daughters fit the victimology for this case, and that terrified him.

"Dave, you can sit this one out if you need to," said Hotch.

Derek raised an eyebrow. "Have you not thought of somewhere for the girls to go when you're on a case?"

"Honestly I haven't. It's not like I know anybody."

"Ahem!" Garcia pointed to herself. "I could stop by your house _or _I can adopt them for the duration of the case. I haven't met your kids yet or anything, but you trust me, right? Besides, Richmond is only an hour away from where you all live."

Perhaps if this was one of those cases that would take him across the country, he would have taken Hotch up on his offer to sit it out, but Richmond _was_ only an hour away from his home in Stafford. Eccentric as she was, he trusted Garcia with his life, so surely he could trust her with two self-sufficient teenage girls? Besides, the girls are home alone all day while he's at work, the situation wouldn't be much different. If he could just have Garcia help him out this once, he'd figure something out by the next case. Even so, he didn't want to bother her.

"I wouldn't want to bother you with-"

"Don't be silly!" she insisted. "I've been dying to meet Little Rossis 1 and 2! I stalked their YouTube channels; we'll get along great. Pretty please?"

Rossi sighed and answered with, "No tattoos, weird piercings, or underage drinking."

"Don't you worry sugar; we're going to be best friends by tomorrow. Just you wait."

"That's what I'm afraid of," teased the Italian. He really hadn'tthought of what was going to happen with the girls while he was away on a case. At least Hotch and JJ had family members around for Jack and Henry. Rossi had neighbors with whom he was on good terms, but nobody that he would trust with his children, and he was a tad estranged from his family. He needed to figure something out before the next case- and fast.

~.*~.*~.*

Haylee sat on the edge of Harper's bed, petting the dog. "Do you think Mudgie would get along well with cats? I really want to get a cat."

"I don't know, maybe."

"I'll ask Dad when he gets home."

Harper opened up the UPS package that sat on her dresser and began sifting through it; their relatives in New Orleans had been sending some of their personal items to their new home in Virginia. "Oh look, it's some of our CDs…so you really started calling him 'dad' last night?"

"Yeah, why not? It felt like it was about time."

"It won't be weird if I start, will it?"

"Not at all. I think he was glad to hear-"

In the middle of Haylee's sentence, her phone rang. "Hey Dad. Do you have to go do an evaluation again?"

Rossi sighed on the other end, "I wish it was just that."

"Oh, you've got a case? Well that's not a bad thing; it's your job. So where are you going?"

"Richmond."

"The one in Virginia?"

"Is there another Richmond?"

"I don't know, _is _there? How long will you be gone?"

A short silence followed while he thought about it. "I don't know. The rest of the team is already on their way to Richmond, but I'm about fifteen minutes from the house. I'm not leaving the two of you home alone for that long."

Haylee gestured for Harper to come closer and put the phone on speaker. "Don't tell me that we have some creepy Italian aunt living nearby who smells of bay leaves and cilantro and shouts _baciami il culo _at inappropriate times."

"What kind of relatives do you _have_ on Danielle's side?"

Harper leaned in closer to the phone. "Spanish-Italians from Montréal is all the explanation needed, Dad."

"But seriously, we don't have a creepy Italian aunt around here, do we?"

"No, nothing like that; my closest sibling lives in Lancaster. But, I do have a Technical Analyst."

"A co-worker?" chime the girls.

"I had no other viable option. A neighbor comes and looks after the dog, but I wouldn't trust them with my kids- at least not yet. I'm really sorry that I have to do this."

"Don't be," Harper insisted. "It's part of your job, Dad. Garcia is the Technical Analyst, right? She sounds really nice, and you trust her. I take it we should pack enough clothes for about a week just in case."

"Yeah," Haylee added. "Really, don't worry about it. I mean, yeah, we don't exactly know her yet, but you've said before that you'd trust her with your life. You can't have us throwing wild drug parties, now can you?"

"I can sit this case out if you'd prefer, really, I can."

"Don't be silly!" Haylee exclaimed as Harper got up to gather her things. "Richmond is nearby. Go to work, we'll stay with Garcia. Or Penelope. Or- hey Harp, start mine too will ya?- or, whichever."

"And you're sure you're all right?"

"Dad, just because Danielle tossed us out doesn't mean that we're convinced you'll do the same just because you've got to figure something out while you're working. Really, it's all right. Now hang up so you can put both hands on the wheel. See you a bit, Dad."

~.*~.*~.*

Penelope Garcia turned out to be a bubbly heavyset blonde with glasses and a colorful wardrobe. She reminded Harper of friend Joel Clay's mom with the way she hugged her and sister the moment they met. Harper liked that. There's nothing that starts off a friendly relationship quite like a hug. She insisted on being called anything but 'Ms. Garcia,' because that's what strangers call her. 'Friends call me Garcia, or any nickname you can get from Penelope.'

Honestly, Harper didn't mind sitting around the BAU today. It was quiet since the agents were all at work, and Garcia left the conference room open so they'd have somewhere to go. They'd each brought with them several books to read. She had to give her dad props- his literature collection was excellent. The bookshelf in the den was stacked six rows high with books ranging from the MLA top 100 to modern Italian literature. Before leaving the house, she grabbed a book titled _Il Nome della Rosa. _A few years ago, she read the English version of the Umberto Eco novel and was pleasantly surprised to see the original Italian version at her dad's house. Haylee was going to be so jealous that Harper found it first!

They spent a few hours in the conference room until it was time to head to Garcia's house.

"Stop worrying Dad," Harper laughed on the phone that night. "We're getting on like old friends. You just be careful hanging out with your psychopaths and serial killers."

Garcia's apartment just outside of DC was small, but welcoming. Her room was in this big open space by the kitchen and dining area ('bedrooms are too normal,' she said) but there was small bedroom next to the bathroom.

"Just set your stuff down in the bedroom. Do you want to order a pizza for dinner?"

"Sure," Harper said, handing Haylee her bag to take to the room. "Dad gave us money to give you since he knew you wouldn't accept it from him."

Garcia smiled and searched for the number for her favorite pizza place. "Keep it- Rossi knows I won't take it from you, either. It's his clever way of giving money to you girls to spend or save up as you wish. Just tell him I took it if he asks- what do you like on your pizza?"

"Just cheese is fine with both of us," Harper said, not wanting to be any trouble.

"Garcia! Oh my," an excited squeal came from the bedroom. "You have a ukulele!"

"Yes m'am, I'm trying to learn to play," the analyst answered.

"We can teach you," I said. "Ukulele was the first instrument I learned how to play aside from the piano, and Haylee's been playing uke, banjo, guitar and mando for ages. It's really simple, we could have you on basic chords by tomorrow night."

"That would be super fantastic of you; and are you sure that you're Rossi's offspring?"

"Ninety percent sure," Harper joked.

~.*~.*~.*

Corrie Lawless's body was found the next morning the James River. Abigail Smith was abducted later that day. Abigail had the same hazel eyes and brown hair as the other victims, and at seventeen was right in the unSub's preferred age range.

Dave stared at the bulletin boards in the room and stared at the pictures of the lives cut short. Images like this were never new to him, but the sympathy he felt for the families was, because it wasn't sympathy but empathy. All of the victims were around the same age as his daughters. The knowledge that these murders were happening just an hour from their home in Stafford County was horrifying to say the least.

They were too late to save Corrie Lawless, but he'd if damned if he let Abigail Smith end up in James River.


End file.
